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The company has acquired 675 MW of battery energy storage projects (BESS) in Texas and Massachusetts from an American developer. Of the total capacity, 600 MW is located within Texas’s ERCOT power market, while the remaining will be developed in Massachusetts’ ISO New England region. The Texas projects are larger, with an average size of 150 MW, while the Massachusetts assets will reach an average capacity of 5 MW each, representing a backup duration of 2 hours. Commissioning of the power plants will occur in phases starting in 2024, with completion expected by 2026.
Uriel Renewables is the US-focussed arm of Spain-based Uriel Renovables, established in 1988. The company is focused on the development of solar, hydroelectric, and biogas sectors in Spain and in new markets, including the US, Poland, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, and the Caribbean. In 2008, the company established its US subsidiary and with the latest acquisition, seeks to expand its development pipeline in the country to include energy storage assets. As per its website, Uriel has more than 1 GW of renewable energy projects in development, globally. The company follows the build, own, and operate (BOO) strategy and enters projects at the greenfield development stage, leveraging its experience across the value chain to secure financing and progress the assets to maturity.
During the past six months, Enerdatics has observed a marked increase in the number of energy storage-focused transactions in the US, driven by the rising need for flexibility in each power market and the incentives offered under the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). In 2022, M&A activity in the BESS segment nearly doubled y/y, with deals in Texas accounting for ~30% of the transaction volume. In Nov’22, BlackRock made its largest move in the energy storage space by acquiring Jupiter Power and its 11 GW development pipeline from sponsor EnCap Investments. European Energy major Equinor also entered US’s BESS segment through the takeover of East Point Energy and its 4.1 GW pipeline of assets on the country’s east coast. Going forward, Enerdatics expects to continue seeing a rise in deal activity for BESS assets, as operators seek to balance the intermittency of renewable energy sources with long-duration storage facilities.
The above analysis is proprietary to Enerdatics’ energy analytics team, based on the current understanding of the available data. The information is subject to change and should not be taken to constitute professional advice or a recommendation.
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